The Chromosome-Level Assembly of Ramie (Boehmeria Nivea L.) Genome Provides Insights into Molecular Regulation of Fiber Fineness

Ramie (Boehmeria nivea L.), belonging to Urticaceae, is principally used for fabric production. It a well-known natural fiber material ancient clothing. Despite its important position and application value, the understanding on genetic regulation mechanism of quality limited. Here, we generate chromosome-scale, high-quality reference genome ramie, in which, approximately 90.2% assembled sequences have been anchored 14 pseudochromosomes. Totally 27,664 protein-coding genes are predicted which cover 268.24 Mb region genome. Comparative genomic analysis reveals that 2,047 796 gene clusters expand contract, respectively, underlying significant plant hormone signal transduction cellulose/lignin biosynthesis pathways. An integrative combining quantitative trait loci (QTL), comparative transcriptomic data, cytological experiments unravels molecular regulatory ramie fineness, especially critical regulating role ethylene. This study would lay solid foundation research biology provide valuable improvement varieties.